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Medium-sized terrestrial birds with long, full tail, short wings and stout legs.

Madagascar.

Forest, woodland and thicket.

30-32 cm.

2 genera, 3 species, 3 taxa.

3 species threatened;

none extinct since 1600.

Systematics

The origin and nearest relatives of the mesite family remain mysterious. Since the first scientific description of the family, various authors have associated it with the Columbiformes (pigeons and doves), the...

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Mesites are terrestrial birds, roughly the size of large thrushes or small doves. However, in shape they do not resemble either of these groups; they have a distinctive mien that is totally their own. The small head, the long, broad tail and the very thick and extensive undertail-coverts give...

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Mesites occupy a variety of native forest and woodland types, from closed canopy forest through lower, stunted woodland to more open spiny subdesert thicket. No species occurs habitually in plantations, and the extent of use of open woodland varies between the species.

Traditionally,...

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So far as is known, mesites are exclusively diurnal. As they have distinctive and far-carrying cries, and large amounts of nocturnal survey work (for lemurs) have been carried out in some areas known to support mesites, the lack of records suggests it is unlikely that nocturnal activity is...

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All three species feed on insects, seeds and small fruit in varying proportions, with small adult and larval invertebrates predominating. Crickets, cockroaches and spiders are the dominant invertebrate groups eaten by the White-breasted Mesite, and most of those taken are less than 1 cm long....

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The two Mesitornis species probably show a monogamous mating system, whereas there are suggestions that Monias is polygamous, with different females laying in the same nest. Mesites, at any rate the White-breasted, are territorial, and in this species there is some temporal...

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White-breasted Mesites hold stable territories of 2-15 hectares, and they tend to move roughly 0·5-1 km around their territory during the day. Roost-sites are not usually the same from one night to the next. Taken together, these findings may imply that resources are depleted by feeding, and...

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The three species are all well known to their human neighbours in Madagascar. The Subdesert Mesite is known as “Naka”, in imitation of its calls. In the Menabe area, White-breasted Mesites are called “Agolin’ala”, from “Agoly”, the local name for the...

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The mesite family is one of the most threatened of all bird families. The latest review of the conservation status of the world’s birds by BirdLife International classes all mesite species as globally threatened, placing them in the category Vulnerable. Mesitornithidae is the only bird family...

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Species list

List of species of the Mesites (Mesitornithidae) family. Each species provides information on taxonomy, descriptive notes, voice, habitat, food and feeding, breeding, movements, status and conservation and bibliography.

A detailed list of the species of the family is displayed to our subscribers, showing the following columns: Genus, Species, Common name, Conservation Status, Figure, and the Check mark. Above the table, a tiny search engine is displayed to facilitate the filtering of the species.

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